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    • US Open schedule for the fourth round matches of Coco Gauff and Iga Swiatek
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    US Open schedule for the fourth round matches of Coco Gauff and Iga Swiatek

    Madoc Meredith Posted on

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    NEW YORK – The strain of a long tennis season is often felt at the US Open, with some of the top players struggling to make it to the second week.

    But this year, there was a fairly consistent pattern in the women’s draw: the best players were also the best players in New York for most of the year.

    Not only have six of the top seven seeds reached the round of 16 – with the exception of No. 4 seed Elena Rybakina, who withdrew from the second round due to injury – but other in-form players such as former No. 2 Paula Badosa, rising star Diana Shnaider and newly crowned Olympic silver medalist Donna Vekic have all advanced.

    This makes for an exciting second week in which up to 10 players have a realistic chance of taking home the trophy.

    Here are the five must-watch games from the fourth round on Sunday and Monday.

    Coco Gauff vs Emma Navarro

    Despite being three years older, Navarro feels like a newcomer to the later stages of the Grand Slams. Just three years after winning the NCAA singles championship in Virginia, Navarro has quickly risen to No. 12 in the world with a record of 48-19 this year. And her most important victory to date came in the round of 16 at Wimbledon at the expense of Gauff, who she far outplayed with a 6-4, 6-3 victory.

    Gauff struggled to maintain her patience and composure on the day, but the US Open should provide a more conducive environment for her. She is the defending champion, after all, and she competes extremely hard at Arthur Ashe Stadium no matter how she plays. The question is Gauff’s current level. Even in her 3-6, 6-3, 6-3 victory over Elina Svitolina on Friday, there were periods of questionable play. She will have to play much cleaner to beat Navarro, who is exceptionally fit and simply doesn’t miss many balls.

    Zheng Qinwen vs. Donna Vekic

    These two played for the gold medal just a few weeks ago in Paris, with Zheng winning 6-2, 6-3. Since then, life has been a whirlwind for Zheng, including a major trip back to China before heading to North America. In some ways, it’s surprising she had enough in the tank to even make it to the second week here. But after needing three sets to get through two of those matches, how much further can she go?

    This seems like a good opportunity for Vekic to turn the tables, as she has come through the first three rounds without dropping a set. Vekic has had quite a spectacular summer, reaching the semifinals of Wimbledon before the Olympics.

    Jessica Pegula vs Diana Shnaider

    Pegula’s 0-6 record in Grand Slam quarterfinals is the only sore spot in a career that has far exceeded expectations. Although she would like to end that story at the US Open, Pegula faces a big challenge on Monday against Shnaider, who at 20 has already won three WTA titles this year.

    Shnaider, a Russian whose trademark is covering her hair with a headscarf on the court, first came onto the radar after she won a round at the 2023 Australian Open but decided to study for a semester at NC State rather than turn pro immediately.

    Since joining the tour full-time, Shnaider has performed sensationally, winning titles on hard court, grass court and clay court this year. This is her first real attempt at a Grand Slam, but there are surely many more to come. Shnaider has a big game, but how will she fare under pressure against an experienced player like Pegula, who is good at picking up pace in baseline rallies?

    Karolina Muchova vs Jasmine Paolini

    This is for diehard tennis fans. Muchova’s career has been dogged by bad luck, with injuries seemingly derailing her every time she was close to reaching the top of the sport. Paolini, after several years of not featuring at all in major tournaments, is suddenly everywhere, reaching two consecutive finals this summer at the French Open and Wimbledon.

    While Paolini is a ball of energy on the court, Muchova is a smooth player who probably has more shot variation than any other player in women’s tennis. It says a lot about Muchova’s talent that she is only competing in her sixth tournament since returning from a more than nine-month layoff due to wrist surgery. Muchova lost to Gauff in last year’s semifinals.

    Iga Swiatek vs Liudmila Samsonova

    The two matches they played in 2023 were not competitive, with Swiatek winning both comfortably. But Samsonova is, at least in theory, the kind of player who causes her problems: a strong hitter who can embarrass Swiatek by taking time away from her to line up at the baseline. On the other hand, Samsonova is quite inconsistent, so it’s hard to know whether you’re getting the good version or the completely inaccurate version on any given day.

    Despite being ranked No. 1 by a wide margin, Swiatek has had a tough year at the Grand Slams, apart from Roland Garros, which she won for the fourth time. After third-round exits in Australia and at Wimbledon, Swiatek is under pressure to score another major win before the end of the year.

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    Madoc Meredith
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